Want to convert VHS to DVD-R. what hardware is necessary?

[iosman]

Hello,


Just purchased my Sony DVD writer a few weeks back, have the My Sonic DVD software installed and wondered 12v Air Compressor what needs to be purchased to connect my VHS to my PC so I can start the process.

Obviously quality is key here. Don't want to cut corners. Looking to preserve some vintage family videos and the goal is to get the best quality possible.


thanks
iosman

[lingyi]

Welcome to the forums.

This question has been asked and answered numerous times. Search for "VHS to digital" on this site and at digitalfaq.com.

In addition, read these articles thoroughly: http://www.digitalfaq.com/editorials/digital-video/professional-analog-workflow.htm and http://www.digitalfaq.com/forum/video-restore/1567-vcr-buying-guide.html

And come back with specific questions about things that you don't understand (almost all of the technical stuff goes over my head!) and that may be specific to your situation that you think hasn't (though likely has been) answered.

In a nutshell, you're looking at ~$1000 plus for equipment to get started, ~$100+ for software if you want to do any type of editing and weeks or months of learning to get the "...best quality possible." within your budget and skillset.

Edit: I don't want to list specific members that have a strong reputation for extensive experience and knowledge as I'm sure I'll miss someone. But I will acknowledge that lordsmurf, who wrote the articles at digitalfaq.com is near the top of the list.

[lingyi]

Also, use only Imgburn (which is free) and Verbatim AZO* (the packaging will have the AZO logo on it) or Taiyo Yuden blank discs. Any other burn software or discs and you're highly likely to have bad burns.

*Read these threads about how to recognize the real Verbatim AZO packaging: https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/391272-Beware-of-new-Verbatim-non-AZO-packaging and https://forum.videohelp.com/threads/391271-Best-CD-and-DVD-media. There are NO, repeat NO, quality discs left on the market other than Verbatim AZO and Taiyo Yuden.

[abolibibelot]

This question has been asked and answered numerous times. Search for "VHS to digital" on this site and at digitalfaq.com.

Well, in the “newbie” section, actual newbies should be allowed to ask newbie questions, even if they've been asked and answered numerous times...
But the links you provided are indeed an excellent starting point.
You could have added that if the best possible quality is desired, and there are few tapes to convert, it's probably a better choice to hand them out to a professional in that field who already has the equipment and the experience. But this may be hard to find in India (it's hard to find in France as a matter of fact – there are people who propose that kind of service but don't know much more than the average Joe and simply use some lousy converter box which encodes straight to MP4 at low bitrate...).
$1000 seems a bit overestimated though. More-than-decent results can probably be obtained for less than half that amount. But the difficulty is to actually find equipments in good working order, especially a good quality VCR.

Verbatim AZO

I've had numerous Verbatim DVDs ending up totally corrupted after less than two years, and dirt cheap DVDs from obscure brands which are still redable to this day. So I can't back up this recommendation. Taiyo Yuden — I've never used those. Just like HDDs and other storage devices, one has to operate under the assumption that any unit can fail at any time (or be lost / stolen) and store anything valuable on at least two of them, preferably two of a different brand. Or in this case, keep a backup of the DVDs on a HDD (preferably two).

[manono]

Well, in the “newbie” section, actual newbies should be allowed to ask newbie questions, even if they've been asked and answered numerous times...

I disagree. If anyone wants to be taken seriously he/she should research first and ask questions later. Obviously this person has done none at all. If he/she had, "the best quality possible" wouldn't be a requirement.

The job can be done easily and fairly inexpensively with a simple VHS/DVD combo player/recorder, or go up to and include the "~$1000 plus for equipment to get started, ~$100+ for software" as lingyi mentioned. I expect iosman will settle for something in between and wind up with "good enough" rather than "the best quality possible".

[johnmeyer]

Very few people, especially those who are new to video, ever finish these project which is why, despite the "best quality possible" requirement, I usually recommend the same thing as manono: a VHS to DVD combo. The advantage is that it works, pretty much out of the box, and that you just feed it tapes and blank discs and then have it crank.

The worst experience I had was around fifteen years ago where a guy would call every year around Thanksgiving, wanting to know how to transfer his tapes. He followed the advice I gave him the first time we talked and had indeed purchased the required hardware. I even went to his house one time to actually transfer a tape. It worked just fine, and exactly like it was supposed to but, because of all the "moving parts" of having a computer, VHS deck, capture equipment, capture software, editing software, and authoring software (I'm probably forgetting a few things) he could never make it to the finish line, even for one tape.

He did finally get the combo and AFAIK he did actually finish the project using that.

[lingyi]

I've been posting suggestions on another forum about my recommendations for an external media player and have invited the other posters here with the recommendation that they do a through search on the topic before posting. IMO, asking questions is a good thing, as long as they're thought out and researched beforehand.

[lingyi]

Verbatim AZO

I've had numerous Verbatim DVDs ending up totally corrupted after less than two years, and dirt cheap DVDs from obscure brands which are still redable to this day. So I can't back up this recommendation. Taiyo Yuden — I've never used those. Just like HDDs and other storage devices, one has to operate under the assumption that any unit can fail at any time (or be lost / stolen) and store anything valuable on at least two of them, preferably two of a different brand. Or in this case, keep a backup of the DVDs on a HDD (preferably two).

Are the Verbatims you've had issues with AZO? The link I posted above talks about how Verbatim has been deliberately seeking to fool the public into mistakenly buying non-AZO discs.

And with all due respect, if the issues you've had were AZO, it still stands a tiny percentage of those who had negative results vs the much larger percentage of those who have positive.

I [do] agree with, backup on different media. Ideally stored in different physical locations.

Edit: Up reflection, I apologize as I realize I came across too harsh. Of course you're entitled to your opinion and I apologize. As far as this thread so far goes, it's one recommendation for Verbatim AZO discs, one recommendation against Verbatim discs.